Harry Ebding

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Harry Ebding
refer to caption
Ebding in 1936
No. 8, 30, 33, 11
Position:End
Kicker
Personal information
Born:(1906-09-12)September 12, 1906
Walla Walla, Washington, U.S.
Died:September 11, 1980(1980-09-11) (aged 73)
Santa Clara County, California, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:199 lb (90 kg)
Career information
High school:Walla Walla (WA)
College:Saint Mary's (CA)
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:81
Starts:53
Receiving yards:971 (12.0 average)
Touchdowns:8
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Harry Joseph "Irish" Ebding (September 12, 1906 – September 11, 1980) was a professional

All-American for Saint Mary's College in California, Ebding played seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Portsmouth Spartans (1931–1933) and their successor organization, the Detroit Lions
(1934–1937).

In 1932, Ebding finished third in the NFL in total yards receiving, with 171.[1] He was named All-Pro in 1933.[2]

Biography

Early years

Harry Ebding was born September 12, 1906, in Walla Walla, Washington. His parents, Heinrich Wilhelm Ebding (1863–1919) and the former Katherine Herr (1866–1921), both hailed from the city of Freiburg im Breisgau in Southwestern Germany and emigrated to the United States.[3] Both of Harry's parents died during his boyhood years. His mother died when Harry was 15, apparently from botulism resulting from the consumption of improperly home-canned asparagus.[4]

He attended Walla Walla High School in that city, playing football and basketball.[5]

Collegiate career

Ebding attended

halfback for the freshman team.[6]

St. Mary's end Harry Ebding strikes a fierce defensive pose, 1930.

He did not stay long in the backfield, however, at the first scrimmage of the

1928 St. Mary's team, head coach Ed "Slip" Madigan moved Ebding to end.[7] He was regarded as a promising prospect playing on both sides of the ball under the one-platoon system of the day, said by one news reporter to be both "extremely good on defense" and "equally adept to snagging passes and getting down under punts."[7]

Ebding also played basketball for the Gaels, starring as a

heavyweight classification.[10]

Ebding saw expanded playing time during his

1929 junior year, starting at right end and helping to lead St. Mary's to an undefeated record of 8–0–1. He emerged as the team star for the Gaels, winning a position as left end of the second team for the 1929 All-Pacific Coast squad selected by the West coast sportswriters of the United Press.[11] Ebding was regarded by one observer as "one of the fastest and roughest ends on the coast" of the 1929 season.[12]

He was elected by his teammates as a co-captain of the Galloping Gaels team ahead of his

1930 senior season.[13] The job of kicking off the football and placekicking was added to his tasks in his last collegiate season.[14] Ebding's reputation had grown throughout his time at St. Mary's, to the point where he was regarded as one of the best ends on the West coast as he entered his senior year.[15]

St. Mary's was a major football power of the day and college and professional scouts kept their eyes on Ebding and the team. The 1930 season opener for the Galloping Gaels against West Coast Army was attended by an estimated two dozen scouts.[16] The Gaels won in front of a crowd of 12,000 fans at Kezar Stadium by the resounding score of 32–0, doing nothing to dampen enthusiasm for the player and the team.[16]

This marked the start of an outstanding 8–1 season for the San Francisco Bay Area school, marked by five shutouts, a 21–6 win over UCLA, and a cross-country 20–12 victory over Fordham.[17]

Professional career: Portsmouth

Prior to 1936, there was no NFL draft and players were signed on the basis of talent scouting. As a star of the prominent St. Mary's team, Ebding was noticed and in August 1931 he signed a contract to play with the Portsmouth Spartans of the National Football League (NFL).[18] Joining him at camp with the Portsmouth squad was his former teammate and co-captain at St. Mary's, halfback Fred "Stud" Stennett.[18] Terms of Ebding's deal were not published.

St. Mary's co-captains of 1930, Fred "Stud" Stennett (30) and Harry Ebding (21), both played for the 1931 Portsmouth Spartans of the NFL.

Ebding won a place on the Portsmouth squad and was soon starting at right end.[19] The team started the 1931 season like a house on fire, holding their opponents scoreless in five of the season's first eight games — all of which were won by the Spartans. A season highlight came in the penultimate week, when in Chicago Ebding blocked a punt by the Cardinals and recovered the ball on Chicago's 34 yard line.[19] The team was unable to convert the possession to points, however, and wound up losing the game by a single point, 20–19, en route to a record of 11 wins and 3 losses — losing the league championship to the Green Bay Packers by a single game.

Ebding started 13 of the Spartans' 14 games in 1931, although no statistical records beyond wins and losses were kept by the National Football League prior to 1932, so his precise offensive accomplishments are lost to history.[20] He did not score a touchdown during the year, however.[21]

The 1932 NFL season marked the beginning of systematic league statistical record-keeping and Harry Ebding was the receiving leader out the gate, topping the entire league with 11 catches for 119 yards for the first five games of the season.[22] He was also the hero of Week 6, snagging a 32-yard pass against the New York Giants and setting up Portsmouth for the only touchdown in a 6–0 victory.[23] This would prove to be virtually all of Ebding's offensive output for the year, however, as he would finish the season with 14 catches for 171 yards (an average of 14.3 yards per catch) and 1 touchdown.[21]

Portsmouth would finish the season with a record of 6–1-4, tied with the Chicago Bears and their record of 6–1–6. League champions had historically been declared based upon won-loss percentage, as ratified by vote of the owners, but bad feelings still remained from the 1925 NFL season, in which the 9–0 Chicago Bears had been declared the champion over the 9-0 Pottsville Maroons.[24] Nor did the head-to-head match-up of the two teams provide illumination, since the Bears and Spartans had battled to two ties, 13–13 and 7–7.[25] As a solution, it was determined that the Spartans and Bears should meet in Chicago for a one game "Championship Play-off" to determine the 1932 NFL championship.[25]

Due to blizzard conditions, this first

Bronco Nagurski to Red Grange and a Portsmouth safety.[28] Portsmouth finished the game with just two passes completed, for 29 yards.[29]

Professional career: Detroit

Death and legacy

Harry Ebding died September 11, 1980, in Santa Clara County, California. He was 73 years old at the time of his death.

References

  1. ^ Pete Palmer, et al. (eds.), The ESPN Pro Football Encyclopedia. First Edition. New York: Sterling Publishing, 2006; p. 1040.
  2. ^ "Harry Ebding Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  3. ^ Daniel Gross, "Heinrich W Ebding," Geni.com, last edited March 8, 2021.
  4. ^ "To Test Suspicious Asparagus," Spokane Spokesman-Review, Oct. 29, 1921, p. 7.
  5. ^ "Summaries of Thursday Play in High Tourney," Tacoma Daily Ledger, March 12, 1926, p. 7.
  6. ^ "Grid Material at St. Mary's Plentiful for '28," Oakland Post Enquirer, Dec. 12, 1927, p. 27.
  7. ^ a b Frank Lowery, "Madigan Gives Saints First Scrimmage," Oakland Tribune, Sept. 24, 1928, p. 13.
  8. ^ "'Dutch' Conlan in Search of Man to Play Center for Gael Cagers," San Francisco Bulletin, Dec. 13, 1928, p. 20.
  9. ^ "Caged Football Stars," Oakland Post Enquirer, Jan. 14, 1931, p. 11.
  10. ^ "Gael Boxers and Winged O Meet February 19," Richmond [CA] Independent, Feb. 18, 1931, p. 3.
  11. ^ Richard G. Baldwin, "Duffield, Barrager, and Tappan Placed," Los Angeles Evening Citizen News, Dec. 2, 1929, p. 14.
  12. ^ "Billy Coyle Gets Fine Boost," Petaluma Argus-Courier, Sept. 19, 1930, p. 12.
  13. ^ "St. Mary's Has Two Captains," Detroit Free Press, Oct. 19, 1930, sports section p. 3.
  14. ^ "St. Mary's Meets Army Tomorrow: Madigan Men Ready for Opening Game," Oakland Post Enquirer, Sept. 27, 1930, p. 9.
  15. ^ "Slip Madigan Hopes for Powerful Team: St. Mary's Coach Will Concentrate on Offense This Year," San Francisco Examiner, Sept. 17, 1930, p. 20.
  16. ^ a b William Leiser, "St. Mary's Eleven Downs Army, 32-0: Gael Gridders Go Into Early Lead in Kezar Stadium Game," San Francisco Examiner, Sept. 29, 1930, p. 21.
  17. ^ E.K. Hall (ed.), Spalding's Official Foot Ball Guide, 1931. New York: American Sports Publishing Co., 1931; pp. 173, 233.
  18. ^ a b Milt Phinney, "Under the Goal Posts," Oakland Tribune, Aug. 13, 1931, p. 33.
  19. ^ a b "One Point Cards' Winning Edge: Portsmouth Spartans Fall by 20–19 Score at Chicago," Cincinnati Enquirer, Nov. 23, 1931, p. 13.
  20. ^ Jerry Roberts, Pass Receiving in Early Pro Football: A History to the 1960s. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 2016; p. 45.
  21. ^ a b "Harry Ebding," Pro Football Reference, www.pro-football-reference.com/
  22. ^ "Dutch Clark is Sensational in Pro Football," Salt Lake Telegram, Oct. 21, 1932, p. 18.
  23. ^ "Pass Enables Spartans to Win from Giants, 6–0," Muskogee Daily Phoenix, Oct. 31, 1932, p. 8.
  24. ^ Joseph S. Page, Pro Football Championships Before the Super Bowl: A Year-by-Year History, 1926–1965. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 2011; pp. 13-14.
  25. ^ a b Page, Pro Football Championships Before the Super Bowl, p. 15.
  26. ^ Page, Pro Football Championships Before the Super Bowl, p. 17.
  27. ^ Page, Pro Football Championships Before the Super Bowl, p. 18.
  28. ^ Page, Pro Football Championships Before the Super Bowl, p. 20.
  29. ^ Page, Pro Football Championships Before the Super Bowl, p. 22.
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